Karen Forms Over Gulf of Mexico

Tropical Storm Karen, the 11th named storm of the 2013 Atlantic hurricane season, has formed over the southeastern Gulf of Mexico, the U.S. National Hurricane Center said in its latest bulletin.

Karen is packing maximum sustained winds near 60 miles per hour (95 km per hour) and moving north-northwest at near 13 miles per hour (20 km per hour). It is expected to be at or near hurricane strength on Friday, the agency said.

A hurricane watch is in effect from Grand Isle, Louisiana, eastward to Indian Pass, Florida, and a tropical storm watch from west of Grand Isle to Morgan City, Louisiana, and for metropolitan New Orleans, Lake Maurepas and Lake Pontchartrain.

(Reporting by Shruti Chaturvedi in Bangalore; Editing by Gerald E. McCormick